Monkey Business
by MikChaos
Summary: Short story from my creative writing course-work based loosely on the Planet of the Apes.


**Stories from random ingredients**

**Character: a small monkey Place: flight of uneven steps**

**Object: a giant laser Situation: man jumping from the Empire State**

** building**

**Monkey Business**

The animals were restless in their cages as the professor moved eagerly around the lab. Even their occasional frightened noises failed to break his concentration as he continued his experiment, though they all fell fearfully silent as the machine hummed to life.

As the power channelling through it reached its crescendo, a beam of ultra-bright light flared from the aperture to strike the test subject, strapped helplessly to the table. It's brightness startling the cage occupants.

The professor barely noticed, his eyes hidden behind the dark lenses of his protective goggles, as he watched with intent, the continuing result of his experiment.

Smoke began to rise as the light focused into a pinpoint beam and the creature began to struggle against its restraints, screaming helplessly in pain as its flesh began to slowly burn. The professor made several small adjustments, causing the machine to whine at an almost uncomfortable pitch, and the beam to tighten even narrower. The subject sagged lifelessly, only the leather restraints keeping it from sliding down off the sloping table.

The professor switched the machine off as he removed his goggles and made a careful note of the calibration settings on his notepad before allowing the assistants to remove the clearly dead test subject. He knew they would dispose of the carcass, but really didn't care how they did so; as long as his supply of animals was regularly replenished he had no further interest in them.

He made his way up the heavily worn, ancient stairway of the building, his ambling gait perfectly suiting their unevenness. Several flights later he turned onto a wide landing that served as the reception area for his patron. The guards opened the door to admit him wordlessly, their expensively tailored suits doing very little to hide their powerfully muscled bodies underneath. While not their physical equal the professor was still nearer their match than the man who waited impatiently within.

He was barely five foot in height, with a lithe figure that didn't seem to suit the Empire's regional governor. Though all knew that it was his keen and cunning mind that had gained him his position, and the professor understood that with the results of his work, his patron could be set to rise even higher.

"Ah Cornelius. Good news I trust" said the governor as the professor approached him.

"Yes my liege, we have the calibrations on the test model. Transferring our results to the larger device on the roof will take a matter of only a few hours" replied Cornelius, smoothing his long auburn hair down absently.

"None too soon, my old friend. The latest intelligence reports that the rebels are planning to strike against us, even here in the State building. Use whatever slaves you need Cornelius, time is the only enemy we have to fear now."

The professor bowed low, his auburn hair falling to hide his leather-worn face, as he left Lord Spankin's audience chamber and made his way back to the lab to carry out his duties. Although he knew his invention would be used to take the lives of the rebel slaves, he was absolutely certain that should they attack, they would treat him no differently to the soldiers guarding the building down below.

In the three hours it had taken to calibrate the rooftop weapon the professor had tried not to be distracted by the increasingly closer explosions and echoes of the intense, street-by-street fighting, coming ever nearer. The only minor delay had been when one of the explosions had rocked the building and one of the slaves had fell, screaming, the three hundred feet to the street below.

Lord Spankin arrived, accompanied by his burly guards. "Is it ready Cornelius?" he asked, "The rebel's guerrilla tactics have let them get all too close". An edge of fear entered his voice for the first time.

"All is completed my Lord. It can be controlled, targeted and fired all from this console" replied the professor, gesturing to a computerized device beside him.

Spankin looked to his guards and gave a small nod of his head, before they charged forward at the remaining slaves on the rooftop. The pink-skinned creatures were unable to match the sheer power and ferocity of the hairy guards and within moments were all thrown off the building to their deaths.

His communications device crackled to life and Lord Spankin listened intently before turning to the professor once again. "These are your target co-ordinates" he indicated on a map of the surrounding area, "fire at will".

The machine hummed to life, as everyone felt their neck hair tingle with the power it generated. The professor entered the target on the console and, with only the merest hint of a hesitation, pressed the fire button.

It was as if a second sun had lit the sky as the weapons beam knifed out into the city, cutting a fiery swathe through buildings and bodies alike before striking what must have been a fuel depot of some sort, before it exploded like a blossoming fire-flower. Then the beam was gone and all was silent.

Lord Spankin stood upon the parapet of the building, his communication device set to amplify his voice "Let all tremble before the might of the Simian Empire! Let all bow before Spankin the Monkey!".


End file.
